This anthology of poetry on religious and spiritual themes,
includes 140 poems by 64 poets. The content of Meditations on Divine Names is
organized into the following ten sections: Naming, Names, Earth, Water, Air, Fire, He, She, Being, Loving.
This framework avoids the conventional divisions into Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven, or Light and Darkness. It also goes beyond
religious denominations, or specific divine names, such as Yahweh, Allah, and Christ, or Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. Similarly, there is no separation of poems into different religious denominations and spiritual traditions. Different themes are intertwined in each poem and their order follows thematic threads within each section - bread, sunlight, birth, mothering...

The mystery can be approached from many directions. The heart of the visible matter is invisible. Science makes inroads into understanding how matter works, but the more you read about science - especially at the outer ends of the spectrum, quantum physics and cosmology - the more it sounds like religion. This last word, oft maligned and distorted into fanaticism and pride-based hatred, actually focuses on connections between people, between humans and the divine. The word "religion" stems from a Latin root variously translated as "respect for what is sacred, reverence for the gods," or "obligation, the bond between man and the gods"). St. Augustine connected this word to "re-reconnecting" ("re-ligare") and contemporary theologians emphasize the connectivity inherent in religion.

Connectivity to what? Typically, religions connect people into groups sharing the same beliefs, their dogmas become immutable and a source of hatred. Remember the wars between the Protestant and Catholics in Ireland? During Reformation when the whole European continent was in flux? But religions, at their core, also connect people with the Ultimate Source of Life, the Higher Being, the Absolute, the One and here, despite the divisiveness of language, similarities begin to emerge. The "divine" of the anthology's title is a word introduced into English in the 14th century and it stems from the Latin "divus" or "god." "Divine" pertains to, or relates directly to "deity" - and the Romans had many different gods, who ruled over various spheres of existence.

The poets belong to different religions or religious denominations. They see the manifestations of the divine in many aspects of life - personal prayer, religious ceremonies, singing of psalms, family relationships, nature, sun, sky, bread making, loving, and love making. They admire the colors of the sky and the liquid nourishment of water. The clarity of mountain air and the gentleness of human touch. From the four letters of YHWH to Lada or Pele, the anthology catalogs some unusual divine names. Poets reflect on the act of naming, the facts of knowing and unknowing of our God(s). They give testimony to their hopes and beliefs, and share what they find beautiful and inspirational, or, sometimes, disturbing. There is darkness around and death, but the poets look for ways to ascend above, to illumination.

The anthology "Meditations on Divine Names" has something for everyone. Maybe it's due to the broad sweep of
its title and the way the book is structured, easy access to themes: water, being, loving, She, He, fire, earth, air, names,
naming. Maybe it's due to the unending number of names humans have assigned to the Godhead, many listed in G. Bennett Humphrey's
poem.
And maybe it's due to the editor, Maja Trochimczyk, a self-proclaimed Catholic mystic and usher in her parish. Her heart is open
to all intimations of spirituality, not excluding the Nones'. For whatever reason, these poets have responded from their own
hopes, often poignantly wry, and their experience in all faiths and religions, enhancing belief with the powers of
imagination and Earth's beauty. Poets tend to be compulsive in their writing; they circle here, non-ending, the mysteries of antiquity and truth."

~ Sharon Chmielarz, December 2012

"Meditations on Divine Names offers rich poetic material selected and collected with great sensitivity,
by an editor for whom religious belief was not a given, but rather the result of conscious search. Its 140 poems by sixty-four
authors represent a variety of religious faiths. The title of this anthology points to some crucial concepts. In several world
mythologies, the act of naming, the act that involves language, takes on the power of creation. One can certainly find parallels here with
poetic acts of creation. Likewise, many of the poems chosen by Trochimczyk represent thoughtful meditations, prayers or thoughtful
incantations that allow the reader a total immersion in the spiritual and
move the reader to the emotional response to, and relationship with, the divine."

~ Prof. Grazyna Kozaczka, Polish Review vol. 58 no. 4 (2013): 109.

Pushcart Prize Nominations for 2012

Moonrise Press is pleased to nominate to the 2012 Pushcart Prizes
the following poets and poems.